Chapter 7

Outside the glass wall, Su Tao returned with several colleagues, both men and women. They gathered around her work station, discussing something with their heads down, sometimes serious, sometimes joking.

The usually quiet girl was now glowing, even her waving fingers were shining. He knew that as soon as she was let out, everyone would see her beauty.

After finishing her work, Su Tao felt thirsty and picked up her water cup, only to find it empty. A black frosted cup appeared on the table, emitting steam. Su Tao looked up and met Xie Jin's deep eyes.

"You don't have to attend the mid-year meeting," he said in a tone that instantly extinguished Su Tao's ambition.

"Why not?"

Xie Jin gave her a disdainful look, said nothing, and went back to his office. He didn't tolerate being questioned, and even Su Tao's simple question crossed his bottom line. If it were someone else, they would have probably left by now.

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Su Tao had always obeyed him in the past, but did he still think of her as the little peach who would compromise everything for him? Moreover, how many extra hours had she worked and how much effort had she put into this event? She had even naively thought of standing guard for him on the last shift.

As the phone rang in the CEO's office, Cheng Shu and Tian Yingying were summoned in and asked for the event's materials and files as soon as they came out. Su Tao closed her eyes and tried to remain calm, whispering, "Don't touch my desk." She then stormed into Xie Jin's office, holding his black frosted cup.

Cheng Shu and Tian Yingying looked at each other, thinking Su Tao looked scary.

With a loud thud, Su Tao slammed the cup onto Xie Jin's large desk, splashing a few drops of water. "Why am I not in charge of this event? I worked so hard on the plan, and now you're just handing it over?"

Although Su Tao's expression was calm, she exuded an aura of discontent that seemed to stun Xie Jin. His black eyes flashed with surprise, as if he was meeting her for the first time.

As she pounded the table with both hands, Xie Jin's gaze fell on her empty wrist, and he furrowed his brows. He cleared his throat and asked in a hoarse voice, "Where's your bracelet?"

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Su Tao took out the bracelet from her pocket and threw it on the table. "I'm returning it to you."

Su Tao slammed the CEO's office door shut, took off her work badge, and started packing up to leave. She couldn't wait for 30 days.

The news of Su Tao slamming the CEO's office door quickly spread in the company's work group. Within a minute, almost everyone knew that Su Tao was finished.

The HR department's personnel staff group was flooded with messages, and after seeing the news, one of them muttered, "Oh my, I need to draft a dismissal notice quickly."

Jin Chuiwen, who was discussing work with him, slapped him hard on the head and scolded, "What are you mumbling about? Focus on your work."

Less than ten minutes later, the group chat was flooded with messages again.

Su Tao slammed the CEO's door, but instead of getting into trouble, she was given back the responsibility for the event she had been stripped of.

In other words, did the CEO compromise with Su Tao after her outburst?

The group chat was flooded with #Su Tao is awesome#.

Jin Chuiwen came out of his office to pat the HR staff on the shoulder and said earnestly, "Young people, remember, you can't just look at the surface when you're analyzing a problem."

---

Tomorrow is the day of the mid-year conference.

After the event venue was confirmed, Su Tao and the three department heads went to the venue to set it up.

Jin Chuiwen followed along with a look of despair on his face. He followed Su Tao, occasionally taking small videos and sending them to the boss. He didn't understand how he, a handsome and capable executive, had become a stalker and paparazzi.

At around eleven o'clock at night, Su Tao was still leading the other two department heads, and it seemed like they were going to have to work all night.

It has to be said that Su Tao is calm, organized, and capable of handling tasks. As long as she's there, everyone else follows her lead and everything goes according to plan.

Compared to Qin, who was known for her strong execution skills, Su Tao was better at directing others.

Especially since she always had a calm demeanor, she didn't even change her expression when faced with a crisis, making it difficult for people to read her thoughts and feeling like nothing could faze her.

Truly a born leader.

Jin Chuiwen sent a message to the boss, telling him that Su Tao and the others might be working all night. He asked politely if he should stay, but he never got a reply.

Jin Chuiwen was so tired that he couldn't stop yawning, so he hid in a corner of the venue and couldn't help but doze off.

Soon, his phone rang, and it was the boss calling. Jin Chuiwen woke up with a start.

He answered the phone nervously, and it turned out that the boss had come to the venue himself!

It was over. The boss had come in person, and he would probably have to explain himself tonight.

If he had known he would end up in this situation, he would never have gone to Su Tao to ask for the 1300 yuan.

"Director Jin, please help us out. We rented some equipment on short notice, but the guy only accepts cash. Do you have any cash we can borrow?" A colleague from the publicity department came up to him, looking worried, and happened to see Jin Chuiwen.

"How much?" Jin Chuiwen reached for his wallet.

"1300."

"...I don't have it!"

Jin Chuiwen was furious when he heard the amount and grumbled as he walked away.

Jin Chuiwen stood at the entrance of the venue like a lackey, waiting for Xie Jin to arrive. He then led him to Su Tao.

Su Tao was discussing something with the head of the marketing department, pointing to the lights and then to the stage with her delicate white hand, looking serious.

Another colleague ran over to her, and after a few words, she bowed her head to read the document in her hand.

Xie Jin stood behind her, watching her for a while before telling Jin Chuiwen to go to his car and get something.

Soon, Jin Chuiwen came back with his hands full of bags and boxes, smiling from ear to ear under Xie Jin's instructions.

"Secretary Su, the boss invites everyone to have supper."

After working so late, nothing could be more refreshing than a sumptuous late-night meal, especially when it was personally provided by the boss and all the dishes had the logo of a big hotel on them. It was truly uplifting.

Everyone eagerly opened their lunch boxes and exclaimed in amazement, "Wow! Abalone, hairy crabs, lobsters, sea cucumbers..."

Su Tao: "..."

Su Tao turned around and saw Xie Jin, dressed in a black suit, standing tall behind her. Their eyes met in the air, but Su Tao quickly averted her gaze and continued to inspect the venue's layout.

She knew he was here to torment her, no doubt about it.

Su Tao lowered her head to check the model of the spotlights and asked the lighting master to turn on all the lights for a final confirmation. She was meticulous and wanted to make sure everything was perfect.

Suddenly, a diamond bracelet appeared in front of her. It shimmered in the light, reflecting a rainbow of colors and looked stunning. Su Tao lifted her eyes and saw Xie Jin behind the bracelet. The diamond's brilliance sparkled on his smooth skin, highlighting his refined features.

He opened his naturally rosy lips and spoke in a low, husky voice that only Su Tao could hear, "Wear the bracelet and never take it off."

Su Tao looked away from the bracelet and continued to check the spotlights.

Suddenly, her wrist was grabbed, and she was forcefully pulled forward. Xie Jin's long legs moved quickly, and Su Tao had to jog to keep up with him and avoid falling to the ground.

He had already pulled her to the parking lot by the time she caught her breath and called out to him, "Slow down."

Xie Jin abruptly stopped and turned around, causing Su Tao, who was still trying to catch up, to collide with his chest.

Su Tao rubbed her head and looked up at Xie Jin with a flushed face, panting slightly from running. "Where are you taking me?"

"Home," Xie Jin replied.

Su Tao tried to shake his hand off, but he held it firmly. "Let go," she commanded.

"Xiao Taotzi," Xie Jin pulled her into his warm embrace, and his deep, husky voice resonated through her chest, "If you keep acting up, I won't forgive you."

Su Tao suppressed her anger and regained her composure. "I'm not acting up."

"I've already agreed to let you be in charge of the event. Why are you still upset?" Xie Jin tilted his head and looked at Su Tao, who was still in his embrace. He softened his tone and said, "Wear the bracelet and come home with me."

Su Tao couldn't help but feel like he was talking to a disobedient puppy. Wasn't his tone just like that of an owner scolding a disobedient pet?

But it didn't feel out of place.

After a moment of silence, Xie Jin still hadn't heard Su Tao's response. He turned his head and saw her looking down at the ground with a blank expression.

"What are you thinking? Speak up," he said.

"Can I speak?" Su Tao asked in return.

"When did I ever stop you from speaking?" Xie Jin playfully pinched her cheek, and the tender, smooth touch made him hesitate to let go. It had been a few days since he had held her in his arms.

"Let go of me," Su Tao's face was pulled, and her words came out with a different tone.

Xie Jin paused for a moment, reluctantly releasing her cheek, but he didn't loosen his grip on her arm.

"Let go of me, I won't run away," Su Tao muttered helplessly, "I'm not a dog."

He tapped her forehead lightly, and the last sentence was clear in the quiet midnight parking lot.

Xie Jin frowned and looked at her displeased, "Why are you saying you're a dog?"

"You kicked me out and then beckoned me back. What's the difference between me and a dog?"

He tapped her forehead again, and Su Tao covered it with her hand, feeling a bit annoyed, furrowing her brows and staring at him.

"Oh, our little peach can even glare at people?" Xie Jin suddenly smiled, as if he was pleased with something, "It's because you threatened to quit first, so I punished you."

Su Tao felt like they were not on the same wavelength at all.

He thought that she was using the threat of resignation to achieve some goal, but she really wanted to resign and leave him.

"I will definitely quit, whether you approve it or not. And as for that bracelet, I won't wear it anymore. I thought it was customized just for me, but it turns out to be mass-produced."

She thought it was something unique and exclusive to her, but it wasn't.

She just wanted something that was only hers, something unique.